The Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 looks to be the replacement for the existing ThinkPad E420s as it sports a 14” screen and is the thin-and-light cousin to the upcoming ThinkPad E430. However, the ThinkPad S430 definitely slims down on the already slim E420s as it measures a mere 0.87” thick. That’s closing in on Ultrabook style thinness, but it still manages to pack in an optical drive. Here are the full specs of the S430 that we know so far:

Until Intel formally announces the Ivy Bridge class of processors there is no way of telling or even guessing the exact processor options, but suffice to say it will include a range of Core i3 to Core i7 processors.

In terms of styling, the ThinkPad S430 looks a lot like the current E420s, it has a curved edge design but still carries the all black finish typical of a ThinkPad. Build-wise the S430 will include a magnesium-alloy frame so this will be a highly durable laptop as you would expect from a ThinkPad.

Notable with the ThinkPad S430 is the fact that it has a ThunderBolt I/O port, one of the first Windows machines to do so. Apple is best known for having the ThunderBolt port in its MacBook Pro laptops. The S430 will also come with Nvidia dedicated graphics as an option so this might make for a good machine for designers that need a bit of extra 3D performance and the ability to connect to a high-end monitor but don’t want to spend the $3,000 it takes to buy a laptop workstation.